Boston, MA – Mitt Romney today announced the support of political commentator and television and radio personality Dennis Miller.

“Dennis Miller is a funny guy, but he understands that the challenges facing our nation are no laughing matter, said Mitt Romney. “We’ve both traveled across America, and we’ve seen hardship in many different forms. Whether it’s the family that can’t pay the mortgage, the unemployed worker who can’t find a job, or the kids graduating from college with no prospects for a career, too many people are hurting. This country needs a turnaround, one that I can deliver. As I travel around the country explaining my plan for a stronger middle class, I am happy to have Dennis Miller on my team.”

“I’ll be voting for Mitt Romney on November 6th because he is a good man perfectly suited to help solve our many problems,” said Dennis Miller. “Let’s be honest with each other, folks. If we’ve reached a time in our nation’s history where men like Romney are demonized and said to be the problem, we are missing the point as badly as the point can be missed. The punditry always says that Romney ‘looks’ Presidential. Here’s what they don’t tell you. It has little if anything to do with his appearance and absolutely everything to do with the way he has led his life. Vote Romney-Ryan.”

Background On Dennis Miller:

Dennis Miller is a political commentator and television and radio personality. He began his career on Saturday Night live in 1985 and later hosted a string of talk show programs. Miller currently hosts a daily, three-hour, self-titled talk radio program, nationally syndicated by Dial Global and is a regular political commentator on The O’Reilly Factor.

Had to throw in a few Millerisms:

Why is electricity so expensive these days? Why does it cost so much for something I can make with a balloon and my hair?

You’ve got bad eating habits if you use a grocery cart in 7-Eleven.

Washington, DC is to lying what Wisconsin is to cheese.

The day before the second presidential debate (Oct 15, 2012) Miller asked what I’ve been asking. Why, in all fairness, shouldn’t one in four of the debates be moderated by someone from FOX News?

Today’s message is about President Obama’s cuts to Medicare and Romney’s own plan to protect the commitment made to current seniors.

President Obama’s healthcare law raided $716 billion from the Medicare trust fund. And he did that to finance his takeover of the healthcare system.

Now if that wasn’t bad enough, his healthcare law also put in place a board of 15 unelected bureaucrats and gave them the power to make additional cuts to Medicare without even having to get approval from Congress. This means they could deny elderly Americans the care they’ve worked for their entire lives – all because President Obama trusts bureaucrats more than he trusts seniors and their doctors.

And here’s one more troubling aspect of all this: According to independent, non-partisan scorekeepers, these cuts the President’s people will take to Medicare won’t prevent it from going bankrupt: Experts estimate that Medicare’s trust funds will be exhausted just twelve short years from now.

Now there is good news, and that is there’s a better approach. Last November, I released a plan to save and strengthen Medicare – without making any changes for those that are 55 years of age and older. And then shortly after that, my running mate, Paul Ryan, he worked in a bipartisan way to advance a nearly identical series of reforms in Congress.

Now that he and I have teamed up, we’re going to ensure that seniors are protected from President Obama’s reckless actions. We’re going to take our solutions all the way to the White House.

We are going to start by repealing Obamacare. That law is threatening seniors, and it is a maze of new federal mandates, and taxes, and penalties that’s hampering job creation.

Once the partisan roadblock is removed, we can work with leaders from both parties to advance real solutions to save Medicare.

The Romney-Ryan plan will make no changes to Medicare for those that are retired or near retirement. And if we act soon, we can reorient our policies without asking seniors to reorganize their lives.

For younger Americans, we are going to strengthen Medicare by providing future retirees with federal financial support and letting them choose from a list of Medicare-approved coverage plans, including a traditional Medicare option.

The amount of financial support that a person would get would be adjusted based on their income; more help would go to the poor or the sick — and less help would go to those that are financially better off. It would be based on how much the plans cost so that seniors always have access to affordable, quality coverage. And no senior could ever be denied coverage for any reason.

The Romney-Ryan plan preserves and protects Medicare – and it guarantees the future of the program by forcing insurance companies to compete for business. Choice and competition will drive costs down and make quality better, resulting in more affordable, better care for our seniors.

We’ve got to save this critical program. You paid into it, and you’ve earned it. I think it’s outrageous that the President took $716 billion out of the Medicare trust fund to pay for Obamacare. No President should put in jeopardy your benefits. And no board of bureaucrats should ever be empowered to make decisions that could deny you the kind of care that you deserve.

This November, I hope you will reject President Obama’s cuts to Medicare. And I hope you will choose Paul Ryan and me to protect health and retirement security, to promote prosperity, and restore our economic growth.

Speaking in Florida today at The Villages, Paul Ryan also echoed Romney’s message. After introducing his 78 year old mother, Betty Ryan Douglas, to the large crowd Ryan spoke of the Medicare benefits he witnessed when he was a boy and his grandmother, stricken with Alzheimer’s, was moved into his home to be cared for. Ryan revealed that he and his mom were his grandmother’s two primary caregivers and also spoke of his mom’s reliance on the promise of Medicare:

Ryan:

“My mom has been on Medicare for over ten years and I won’t tell you exactly how many years over ten years she’s been on it. She plays tennis every week. She exercises every day. She planned her retirement around this promise that the government made her because she paid her payroll taxes into this program which she had this promise with. That’s a promise we have to keep. Here is what the President won’t tell you about his Medicare plan, about Obamacare. The President raids $716 billion from the Medicare program to pay for the Obamacare program. What’s more, in addition to that, he puts a board of 15 unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats in charge of Medicare who are required to cut Medicare in ways that will lead to denied care for current seniors. You want to know what Medicare is saying about this? From Medicare officials themselves: one out of six of our hospitals and our nursing homes will go out of business as a result of this. Four million seniors are projected to lose their Medicare advantage plans that they enjoy and they chose today under this Obamacare plan. What’s worse is the President’s campaign calls this an achievement. Do you think raiding Medicare to pay for Obamacare is achievement? Do you think that empowering a board of bureaucrats to cut Medicare [is] an achievement? Neither do I. Medicare should not be used as a piggy bank for Obamacare. Medicare should be the promise that is made to our current seniors period, end of story. Here is what Mitt Romney and I will do: We will end the raid of Medicare. We will restore the promise of this program and we will make sure that this board of bureaucrats will not mess with my mom’s health care or your mom’s health care.”

Two big-name supporters of two leading GOP presidential candidates square off: Gov. Tim Pawlenty for Romney and Gov. Bobby Jindal for Perry.

Meet the Press airs Sundays from 9-10 a.m. ET on the NBC-TV network; 10:30-11:30 a.m. ET in New York and Washington. The program also re-airs at 2 p.m. ET Sundays and 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. ET Mondays on MSNBC on cable.

“He’s one of the stars of the conservative movement and Republican party,” Pawlenty of Christie. “His endorsement will carry a lot of weight, no pun intended,” Pawlenty joked referring to Christie’s weight. (He said that Christie would enjoy the joke)

Pawlenty said he also encouraged Christie to back Romney’s campaign.

“It’s probably the most valuable endorsement in the country,” Pawlenty said. “For Gov. Romney to get Chris Christie’s endorsement is a major boost to his campaign and will send a signal across the conservative spectrum; tea party types, fiscal conservatives and others, that it’s time to consolidate around Gov. Romney.”

(emphasis added )

From a recent Pawlenty interview on Minnesota Public Radio:

Pawlenty said he will actively campaign for Mitt Romney, who is among the leading contenders for the Republican presidential nomination.

Pawlenty, who endorsed Romney last month, said the former Massachusetts governor is the most qualified among those running. He also told reporters that he was excited to hear that New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is backing Romney’s campaign
[…]Pawlenty also said he’s growing concerned that party stalwarts, the media and the public are becoming too focused on crazy statements and not enough on substance.
[…]
“Eisenhower warned of the military industrial complex,” he said. “There is a political, entertainment and media complex that has developed where politics and news and entertainment are fusing together in a way that is starting to mimic cartoons in a way or reality TV.”

UPDATE – Governor Pawlenty did an excellent job advocating for Governor Romney. It’s good to have him on our team! To read the transcript of the Pawlenty/Jindal interview with David Gregory click here. (Scroll way down.)

Mitt Romney issued a statement yesterday on the death sentence of Christian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani in Iran:

“I strongly condemn the Iranian regime for the conviction and death sentence of Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani. The freedom of religious belief is the most personal of rights, and Iran’s effort to bring the power of the state to bear upon Pastor Nadarkhani’s Christian faith is not only a violation of Iran’s international obligations, but an unacceptable outrage against human dignity. I call on the Iranian authorities to rescind the conviction and death sentence, release Pastor Nadarkhani, and abandon all measures that deny the Iranian people basic human rights.”

Iranian Christian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani has been sentenced to death on a variety of changed charges by the Iranian government. October 3, 2011

Background on Pastor Nadarkhani:

Christian Youcef Nadarkhani, evangelical pastor of about 400 Iranians called the Church of Iran, converted from Islam to Christianity at the age of 19. The small congregation used to meet in a small church in the northern Iranian city of Rasht. In October 2009 he was arrested, imprisoned, and condemned to death for apostasy under Islam’s sharia law. The charges were then changed to rape and extortion. Most recently, he has been accused of being a ‘zionist’.

“Iranian authorities should immediately free pastor Yousef Nadarkhani and drop all charges against him,” Human Rights Watch said last week.

A Supreme Court ruling in June initially overturned a lower court’s sentence of execution against Nadarkhani, but now rights groups are worried that he could still be executed after refusing to give up his Christian beliefs.

“Iran is one of the very few countries in the 21st century where authorities would drag an individual before a court of law and force him to choose between his faith and his life,”said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.

“Nadarkhani should not have to spend one more day in jail, let alone face execution.”

Security forces initially arrested Nadarkhani, a member of the Church of Iran and pastor to a 400-member congregation in the northern city of Rasht, in October 2009.

In November 2010, a lower court sentenced Nadarkhani to death for “apostasy from Islam,” despite the fact that no such crime exists under Iran’s penal code. On September 22, Branch 11 of the Gilan Court of Appeals affirmed Nadarkhani’s death sentence for apostasy, but in June the Supreme Court remanded the case to the lower court for further investigation, ruling that Nadarkhani could not be executed if he had not been a Muslim after the age of maturity – 15 years for boys according to Iranian law – and he repents.

He is currently waiting for the Gilan appeals court to issue its verdict and sentence, and plans to appeal again any death or imprisonment sentence to the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court rejected arguments that apostasy is not a crime under Iran’s laws simply because it is not codified in the Islamic Penal Code, and held that the crime is recognized in Sharia (Islamic law) and by the founder of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

U.S. leaders have denounced Iran’s actions and called for greater respect for religious freedom from the country’s government. Calling religious freedom a “universal human right,” House Speaker John Boehner (R–OH) urged the Iranian government to “abandon this dark path” and release Nadarkhani without conditions.

Representative James Lankford (R–OH) likewise stated that Iran’s detainment of Nadarkhani “clearly shows that they devalue basic human liberty and faith in pursuit of unrelenting control of their country.” He continued: “It is a discriminatory belief that has led to the religious persecution of many Iranian citizens who are endowed with the unalienable right that all men and women around the world have to pursue a more fulfilling and joyous life through religious freedom.”

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton weighed in on the situation, saying the United States is “deeply concerned” about the religious persecution perpetuated by the Iranian regime: “The United States stands with the international community and all Iranians against the Iranian government’s hypocritical statements and actions, and we continue to call for a government that respects the human rights and freedom of all those living in Iran.”

The need is great for the international community to speak out against the serious religious oppression of the Iranian government and particularly the looming death of Nadarkhani. The profound importance of religious liberty to upholding other democratic freedoms, as evidenced in America’s own history, should be integrated into U.S. public diplomacy.

Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice, and his son, Jordan Sekulow, ACLJ Executive Director, are actively working for the safe release of Pastor Nadarkhani and have been in constant contact with Nadarkhani’s attorney, Mohammed Ali Dadkhah. Jay appeared on the O’Reilly Factor (Fox News) to discuss the fight to save Nadarkhani’s life (video uploaded on YouTube on Oct 3, 2011):

Jordan Sekulow also appeared on Fox News to discuss the new false charge of ‘zionist’ being leveled against Nadarkhani (uploaded to YouTube Oct 3, 2011):

To listen to a podcast discussion of Jay and Jordan discussing the latest on Nadarkhani click here.

It is my moral obligation as a Jew to speak out on behalf of an Iranian Christian whom I have never met.

Imprisoned since October 2009, Yousef Nadarkhani was first accused of apostasy against Islam by the Islamic Republic of Iran. In 2010 he was found guilty “and sentenced to death … for abandoning the Islamic faith.” Yet, according to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Article 18 includes a “provision for the right to ‘have or to adopt’ a religion, which has been interpreted authoritatively by the UN Human Rights committee as including the right to change one’s religion.” Thus, Iran is violating its own obligations. Furthermore, the Iranian constitution “sanctions Christianity as a legitimate minority faith.” Clearly, however, this did not matter as the Iranian Supreme Court sought to establish that Nadarkhani was still guilty of apostasy because he has Muslim ancestry.

The Quran is replete with this instruction that everyone has the fundamental freedom of religion. In Chapter 18, it says “This is the truth from your Lord; then let him who will, believe, and let him who will, disbelieve.” Why is this so difficult for these so-called Islamic “scholars” to understand? They spit in the face of the religion they claim to defend by not only violating these teachings but then falsely attributing their vile sense of justice to the tolerant faith of Islam. The allegation that Islam advocates the use of force to spread or maintain itself does not originate from a study of the sources of Islamic teachings. Rather, it originates from a study of the conduct of some so-called “Muslim” states.

Obama's new $1.1 million monolithic 'Magical Misery Tour' bus has been called 'The Beast' and 'Rolling Blunder'. August 15, 2011 (click on image to enlarge)

After Governor Romney toured Isaacson Structural Steel in Berlin, New Hampshire this morning, he took a few questions from the press. He was asked about Obama’s upcoming jobs plan, a possible Paul Ryan presidential run, and Rick Perry’s statement on Monday about Ben Bernanke.

Perry, who last weekend made official his intent to challenge President Obama, said in Iowa on Monday that if Bernanke came to Texas, “we would treat him pretty ugly.”
[…]
“If this guy prints more money between now and the election, I don’t know what y’all would do to him in Iowa,” Perry told supporters. “I mean, printing more money to play politics at this particular time in American history is almost treacherous – or treasonous, in my opinion.”

Romney at Isaacson Structural Steel in Berlin, NH today:

Romney spoke on Obama’s bus tour and his over-due jobs plan:

“The president yesterday spoke about what a mess he inherited from George Bush. My goodness, the American people are tired of hearing about what he inherited. They want to understand what he did with what he got. And, unfortunately what he did was make things worse – make it harder for the American people.

So, I’m glad he’s going to come up with some new ideas. Hopefully, he’ll listen to people who have actually worked in the private sector – who understand how the economy works – because he and his academic and political friends don’t understand what it takes to get this economy going again. And, it’s a little ‘too little – too late’.”

Asked to address Perry’s description of the Fed chairman as “treasonous,” Romney didn’t take the bait: “I don’t have any new comments on the Fed with regard to Rick Perry’s comments as well. I’ve made some comments about the Fed in the past. I could refer you to those. But I’m not looking to be in a give-and-take with Gov. Perry. He’s expressing his views, I express my views and my record. He’s a fine guy, fine governor.”

Romney continued:

“We’ll get a chance to debate and we can probably have a good chance for contrasting views at that point[…]”

On Paul Ryan/others who may get in the race:

“It’s still a bit of an open field. That’s a good thing! Welcome folks in, the more the merrier. I welcome Governor Perry; if others want to get in, you know, terrific! The water’s fine.